Christopher Moore gave up on the idea of love years ago. Now, his life is an endless string of parties and an even longer string of girls. Enjoying the physical perks with none of the emotional mess, hes convinced everyone that hes satisfied—everyone but himself.

Samantha Schultz has moved on with her life. Finishing her student teaching and living with her boyfriend, shes deluded herself into believing shes content. But there is one boy she never forgot—her first love—and she keeps the memory of him locked up tight. She will never allow any man to break her the way Christopher did.

When Christopher's sister and her family move into a new neighborhood, Christopher is completely unprepared to find Samantha living at the end of the street. Memories and unspent desires send them on collision course of sex, lies, and lust. But when guilt and fear send Samantha running, Christopher will have to fight for what has always been his.

Let me tell you a secret. Last year I’d reached my limit with the contemporary romance genre, and I was more than ready to break up with this flame, particularly the NA/coming-of-age stories. It wasn’t the stories, it was me. I’d grown, and they’d remained the same. I needed to move on to better and more original storylines. I appreciated the genre for everything it had given me, all the tears, laughs, swoons and gasps. I would never forget our time together, but I was over it.

I did move on from the genre, and these last few months have been filled with heart sweeping YAs, and brilliant paranormals, as well as edgy suspenseful romances. But sometimes you miss your old love. Sometimes you think, “I wonder how they’re doing. Let me just give them a call…”

Well, I’ve reunited with contemporary, and it feels so good… 😛 …and I have A.L. Jackson to thank for that. A few weeks ago I read the most outstanding book, A Stone in the Sea (I really need to write my review, but till then, just take my word for it – READ IT!!), which brought back the love, and pure joy I used to feel for this genre. I went on to read a few more which were so so good, and now I’ve just finished Come to Me Recklessly, and I’m shouting, “Yes!”

This book brought it all back for me. I felt so many emotions, the most recurring being sheer happiness. I smiled big so many times while I was reading this, and I want you to read it so you can feel the same way. Let me tell you a little bit about his book (not too much, just enough to whet your appetite), and then you can go 1-Click this beauty.

They say time mends all things.

I say they are liars.

I highlighted this on the first page. The first page! I knew immediately that I was going to be in for an emotional ride. Of course, this is A.L. Jackson, so I shouldn’t have expected anything less.

Come to Me Recklessly is a story about lost love, broken chances, forgiveness, and second chances. The story follows the relationship between Christopher and Samantha, alternating from their sweet beginnings, to the bitterness of their present. A.L. jackson’s words made me feel the wretched disappointment of missed chances. Samantha and Christopher fell fast when they were young, and Jackson conveyed that rush of discovering new friendship and new love so well that I couldn’t help but also feel the crushing sadness of their end.

But that devastation only made the rediscovery of their feelings so much more gripping. I felt the connection between Christopher and Samantha, and I held my breath as they struggled to forgive past wrongs, and as they fought to accept the fact that they couldn’t escape what was between them.

She’d always had this thing about her that made me feel like I was brushing up against something special, a treasure rarely found, and it’s always felt like when I touched her she cleansed some of the ugly from me.

I thought that the pacing of this book was perfect. Chris and Samantha slowly find their way back to each other, and the sexual tension that simmered as they circled each other was simply scrumptious! Still, even though I had to wait for it, I loved experiencing the torture these two felt as they tried to refuse the pull of their connection (as if!).

Was this what it felt like to lose your mind? Because everything I felt was at odds, wanting to shun every last thing and begging for more.

If you love a slow burn then you’ll love this one. Also, if you enjoyed Aly and Jared’s story in Come to Me Quietly and Come to Me Softly then you’ll really enjoy this one. I loved seeing them happy together after everything that they went through. Of course, you don’t have to read their story to read this one. This one is complete and perfect all on its own. There were actually some aspects of this story that I liked more than the first two. I loved the pacing and tone for this one. I thought that it was lighter than CtMQ and CtMS, since there wasn’t as much internal monologue. I loved the dialogue and interactions between Christopher and Samantha; their chemistry was the best! My only gripe with this story was that I predicted a lot of the it really early on, but that didn’t affect my enjoyment. The characters were multi-dimensional, the writing was beautiful, and the love story affected me, so all the important elements were present.
Listen, I love second chance romances. I love second chance romances that have the deepest emotions and the sweetest love. I love second chance romances that fill me with hope, heartache, and joy. I love this second chance romance.

She lowered herself, gave a little shove, and slid down. I stopped her descent at the bottom, her back pressed into the metal. I grasped the sides, holding myself up, my nose an inch from hers as I hovered in her space. Her eyes were doing that wild thing again, a raging sea that churned with all that shyness, but flamed with bold strikes of courage, a storm that didn’t know which way to turn.

“Anyone ever kiss you before, Samantha?” I murmured low, letting my nose do a little exploring along her jaw.

She shook her head no.

“Didn’t think so,” I whispered, before I took a chance I was pretty damned sure was worth taking, and brushed my mouth against hers. And was I ever right. She tasted like sugar and all things sweet, like a spoonful of pure honey. A remedy.

Her kiss was every kind of timid, cautious in her inexperience, but it didn’t take a whole lot to convince me that this kind of kiss was my favorite.

❀

A.L. Jackson

The New York Times bestselling author of Take This Regret and Lost to You, as well as other contemporary romance titles, including Come to Me Quietly, Come to Me Softly, Pulled, When We Collide, and If Forever Comes.

She first found a love for writing during her days as a young mother and college student. She filled the journals she carried with short stories and poems used as an emotional outlet for the difficulties and joys she found in day-to-day life.

Years later, she shared a short story she’d been working on with her two closest friends and, with their encouragement, this story became her first full length novel. A.L. now spends her days writing in Southern Arizona where she lives with her husband and three children. Her favorite pastime is spending time with the ones she loves.

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